Non-native plants - Ask Extension
Hello,
My husband and I are having a debate about native vs nonnative MN plants. I know there is a big push to plant native MN plants, but he cont...
Knowledgebase
Non-native plants #800194
Asked July 09, 2022, 8:29 AM EDT
Hello,
My husband and I are having a debate about native vs nonnative MN plants. I know there is a big push to plant native MN plants, but he contends that plants that are appropriate for our climate zone- the Twin Cities - are still good for pollinators, other insects and birds. Can you help settle this?
Ramsey County Minnesota
Expert Response
Thank you for writing.
To be honest, you will get various answers on this. Here is mine.
Every ecological area (a biome) has its own set of interactions between climate, plants, animals, microbes etc.
Our environment is radically changed by wholesale use of pesticides (in agricultural land and in urban areas), drainage of wetlands, pollinator food deserts (parking lots, roads, grass lawns, etc), fertilizers that have greatly raised phosphorus in soil and water. Climate change which raises heat and CO2 used by plants is another.
The arrival of nonnatives and the removal of controls on natives has also changed the ecology.
The question of which is better (natives or nonnatives) depends on what one is trying to do. Some nonnatives (e.g., honeybees) are highly valued. Others are not.
Too me, the issue as a gardener is to promote pollinators, because of the catastrophic fall in these insects that are essential to food and flowers. https://beeinformed.org/2021/06/21/united-states-honey-bee-colony-losses-2020-2021-preliminary-results/
In that regard, natives and non-natives seem to be the same.
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ece3.6826
Others are interested in conserving native genestocks. A worthy goal too.
Here are two ways to participate
https://bwsr.state.mn.us/l2l
https://mnlcorp.com/backyard-nursery/?gclid=Cj0KCQjwzqSWBhDPARIsAK38LY_hTKtSY5yxjKU5pZsrVdVIgZckXq9eiIhSDGztPEqzEj8rhYkMBIgaAmK2EALw_wcB
To be honest, you will get various answers on this. Here is mine.
Every ecological area (a biome) has its own set of interactions between climate, plants, animals, microbes etc.
Our environment is radically changed by wholesale use of pesticides (in agricultural land and in urban areas), drainage of wetlands, pollinator food deserts (parking lots, roads, grass lawns, etc), fertilizers that have greatly raised phosphorus in soil and water. Climate change which raises heat and CO2 used by plants is another.
The arrival of nonnatives and the removal of controls on natives has also changed the ecology.
The question of which is better (natives or nonnatives) depends on what one is trying to do. Some nonnatives (e.g., honeybees) are highly valued. Others are not.
Too me, the issue as a gardener is to promote pollinators, because of the catastrophic fall in these insects that are essential to food and flowers. https://beeinformed.org/2021/06/21/united-states-honey-bee-colony-losses-2020-2021-preliminary-results/
In that regard, natives and non-natives seem to be the same.
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ece3.6826
Others are interested in conserving native genestocks. A worthy goal too.
Here are two ways to participate
https://bwsr.state.mn.us/l2l
https://mnlcorp.com/backyard-nursery/?gclid=Cj0KCQjwzqSWBhDPARIsAK38LY_hTKtSY5yxjKU5pZsrVdVIgZckXq9eiIhSDGztPEqzEj8rhYkMBIgaAmK2EALw_wcB
